


Thermals

by Vietta



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Ambiguous Relationships, Cuddles, Illegal Activities, M/M, cold as Shiva's ass, modeoheim
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-06
Updated: 2016-08-06
Packaged: 2018-07-29 16:07:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,201
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7690972
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vietta/pseuds/Vietta
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Technically speaking, Modeoheim had no inhabitants. It was abandoned, with good reason, and populated solely by monsters. Shinra had abandoned all outposts and, after a few particularly nasty blizzards after Meteorfall, any remaining locals in the area had picked up and moved to more hospitable regions. Between unpredictable weather patterns and an increase in monster activity, the towns and factories had been hollowed out and left to sink under the snow.</p>
<p>So if there was rumor that Tseng was driving up there in an all terrain vehicle on Rufus’ behalf, then they were completely unfounded.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Thermals

Technically speaking, Modeoheim had no inhabitants. It was abandoned, with good reason, and populated solely by monsters. Shinra had abandoned all outposts and, after a few particularly nasty blizzards after Meteorfall, any remaining locals in the area had picked up and moved to more hospitable regions. Between unpredictable weather patterns and an increase in monster activity, the towns and factories had been hollowed out and left to sink under the snow.

So if there was rumor that Tseng was driving up there in an all terrain vehicle on Rufus’ behalf, then they were completely unfounded. No-one lived in Modeoheim, nothing happened there, and the demand for materia was certainly not high enough to warrant manufacturing it the old fashioned way, direct from raw mako, in remote mountains found there. The new ways to try and synthesize the magic orbs, the ways the WRO was promoting as safe and effective, were truly the only way to obtain it anymore. Sure, new materia was prone to flaws and cracking, the magic was harder to cast and the range was shit, but it was  _ environmentally friendly. _

So no, Tseng wasn’t driving to Modeoheim and Reno wasn’t shivering in the passenger seat, cussing Modeoheim and Shiva all his chattering teeth could manage as the thermometer on the dash dipped into the negatives. Tseng hadn’t warned Reno that Modeoheim was cold enough for frostbite and no, Reno hadn’t ignored his suggestion to get thermal underwear. None of that was happening.

At least Tseng damn wished it wasn’t.

“S-seriously, I bet if I stuck my fingers o-out the window they’d b-be icecubes in like, a s-second.” Reno was gazing out the window, staring at the same blank white shit they’d been driving through for the past hour. Without his GPS, Tseng would have no gaia-damned idea where they were. 

“Well, don’t do that then.” The windshield wipers were going full blast and Tseng still couldn’t see shit. If Modeoheim had trees, he might have hit one by now. Driving was getting more and more risky and he was taking it more and more slowly. Soon enough he would need to pull off and wait for things to die down. He wasn’t about to mention that to Reno, who was convinced he was going to freeze solid on the walk from the truck to the warehouse.

Reno shot him a look, a rather mean one, and Tseng pretended he didn’t see it. He focused on driving, letting Reno fiddle with the radio and hold his gloved fingers, if you could call the thin cheap things he had on his hands gloves, up to the vent to warm them. When he decided that wasn’t warmth enough, he dug his fire materia out of his bangle, clutching it between his fingers and watching the flames inside it flicker with something like greed in his eyes. It was a long drive in good conditions, and seeing as the freak blizzard that had sprung on them was a less than ideal condition, it was going to take forever to make it to their destination. Keeping Reno in a decent mood was a good idea.

Though, the more Reno bitched about the cold, the more Tseng wished he had brought Rude along instead.

It took another thirty miles of slow, torturous driving for Tseng to lose visibility. He parked the truck, knowing he would have to shovel it out once the storm cleared out in a few hours, and broke the news to Reno.

The redhead did not take it well.

“Fuck you mean, we’re gonna hafta wait it out?” Whipthin and shivering even in the heated truck, Reno was beyond distraught.

“Exactly that. Visibility is gone. We need to make it alive, so we are going to have to stop. I’m not about to drive off a cliff to check on Rufus’ little project.” He hadn’t turned the truck off, not yet, but they would need to conserve the fuel. Old winter tankers still ran on mako batteries and, understandably, the things were getting harder and harder to come by. The one they had was a hybrid of a sort, relying on the mako battery only for keeping the engine running and letting electric battery take care of everything else. They had spares for both in the back with the supplies they had brought with them for the trip, but Tseng wanted to avoid changing them out. Mostly because he would have to have Reno do it. Not that he couldn’t swap car batteries, just that Reno was better at it.

Which was why he had brought him instead of Rude. He regretted it less when he remembered that Reno was a capable mechanic and that his survival may depend upon him.

Reno ran his hands through his hair, his frustration coming out with a few strands of red as he slams his fists against the dashboard with a cry. “Fuck! Fuck shit fuck!”

“I should remind you this is a very enclosed space,” Tseng rubbed his ear, frowning at Reno for his needlessly loud outburst, “and that you are very loud.”

Reno glared again, green eyes sharp in his pale face. “I’m fuckin’ cold, Tseng. I”m fuckin’ cold, and you’re not driving the wagon to warmth anymore.” He picked up his materia, where he had discarded it in his lap moments ago to throw his tantrum, and he got that greedy look in his eyes again. “We could start setting shit on fire…”

“Want to walk, Reno? I’ll let you.” Tseng snorted, adjusting his own thick, insulated, deliciously warm gloves in a very pointed fashion. If it was possible to adjust them  _ at _ Reno, then he had successfully done so.

Looking to his own thin, unsuitable gloves, Reno sighed, stowing his materia away. “Ifrit’s balls… How long are we planning to stay stuck and fuckin’ freezin’, Tseng?”

“Let’s just say that I warned you of the possibility.” Tseng was trying very hard not to be smug as Reno shivered, the heat starting to leech out of the cabin after he turned off the engine. The heater was still on, the wipers too- with little purpose-, but the engine had given off a decent amount of the heat they had been enjoying. The cargo portion of the truck was better insulated, but to get back there they would need to abandon the cabin and trudge through the snow. It was only a few feet to walk, but even with the promise of more warmth he doubted he would get Reno to leave his seat. He fixed the redhead with a look, one not nearly as mean as what Reno had been sticking him with, “and that I told you to get thermal underwear.”

“You can’t make me wear undies of any kind, bossman. Thermal or not.” Reno snickered, his mood brought up a bit simply at the mention of  _ underwear _ like he was some damned child. His immaturity was endearing, though Tseng wished he had been less so before their trip and had just bought the damn winter gear as instructed. 

“Well mine are keeping me quite warm.” Tseng opened the door of the truck after he freed the key to the back from the ring. 

It took less than half a second for Reno to start swearing at him, using words Tseng was certain he had made up. He did catch a few swears in Wutain as he walked around the truck, brushing snow off the headlights and listening to Reno rage through the storm. When he got to Reno’s door, he had to fight the redhead to get it open. Reno was using what little leverage he had to keep the door closed, trying to retain what little heat was left in the cabin, but Tseng had mass and muscle on him. The door gave and he nearly ripped Reno out of the seat with the force of it. He caught the boot that lashed out at him, listened to Reno call him crazy and a host of other unsavory things while he finished ousting the redhead from his seat. When he shut the door Reno gave up, huddling in on himself and rubbing his arms vigorously. He shouted to be heard over the storm, snow sticking to his skin. “We aren’t walking, r-right? P-please, Gaia, d-don’t make me w-walk.”

“Cargo hold is warmer.” Tseng grabbed a thin elbow, so goddamn thin, and tugged Reno after him. He kept his free hand on the side of the truck, making sure they didn’t wander from the vehicle for even a second. Gaia only knew how lost they would get with one misstep. Opening the back was easy and so was shoving Reno inside. Keeping Reno inside was even easier, once he realized there was warmth here. The back was mostly empty, just a few of their bags and a stack of tie downs to keep materia crates they would be bringing back from rolling around and creating problems. He pulled a few mylar blankets from his pack, passing one to Reno and keeping one for himself. 

Greed and desperate cold had Reno snatching for the blanket so hard he almost ripped it, wrapping the shiny fabric around his shoulders. Tseng sat next to him, letting part of his blanket fall over Reno. The redhead crinkled next to him, adjusting to cover as much of himself with the blanket as he could manage. What Tseng offered of his blanket, Reno took plus a mile. They were pressed tight together, shoulder to shoulder and hip to hip. The full length of Reno’s thigh was pressed against Tseng’s and he wasn’t sure what to do with that, not when Reno was shivering against him and trying to get even closer. He draped his arm around his subordinate, no, not that anymore, not for years, and let him get closer still. “Wishing you had that gear now, Reno?”

“You mean your fancy space panties?” Reno snorted, his head lolling over Tseng’s arm to rest on the cool metal of the truck. Even if he wanted his arm back, Tseng wasn’t going to be able to retrieve it anytime soon, not when Reno was trying to use it as a neck warmer. “Nah, I’ll just leech off you.” Tseng watched him, watched his eyes close as he relaxed against the truck and his body in equal measure. The snow that had stuck to his face outside was melting now, little droplets of water spattered like errant freckles over his cheeks and glistening on his eyelashes. 

Maybe he should have brought Rude.

The metal against the back of his head was cold in a refreshing way and Tseng could understand why Reno was melting against it. Any chill that had been in him was gone now, replaced by a comfortable heat. He kept glancing at Reno out of his periphery, watching the water droplets on his skin, taking note of his chapped lips, catching flashes of green once or twice as Reno stole his own glances. He wondered what Reno was seeing as they faced the ceiling together, stealing sidelong looks in little flashes of brown and green. The silence got uncomfortable when their eyes met a third time, so Tseng spoke up to break it. “You know, if you put on some weight maybe you wouldn’t freeze like this.” 

“You know I just burn it up, boss.” 

Was it his imagination or was Reno leaning harder against his body? His breaths were evening out; Tseng could feel the line of his body softening where it touched him. He knew Reno could sleep pretty much anywhere -comfort was not exactly necessary for him to achieve this end- but he hadn’t expected it. “Are you… are you falling asleep?”

“Mhhm.” Reno’s head lolled against his shoulder, the sharp line of his nose pressing against Tseng’s throat. “Sorry.”

“It’s fine.” Tseng swallowed, adjusted the arm around Reno to hold just a little more comfortably. “Rest while you can. I’m putting your thin ass to work tomorrow.” 

“Like hell.” Reno snorted into his neck, mumbled a few more things into Tseng’s neck that he couldn’t quite translate to Standard or Wutain, and then Reno was out. His face pressed to Tseng’s skin, his grip on his blanket slacking off and letting it slide a bit. Tseng tucked it back around his shoulder as gently as he could, not wanting to rouse him. Eventually he would be able to fall asleep himself, but for now he made himself comfortable, resting his head atop Reno’s. It was nice, like this- buried in strange crinkly blankets with his not-quite-employee huffing across his collarbone in his sleep. An errant thought told him he could get used to it, with regular exposure. Maybe even generally enjoy it. Rational thought told him that exposure would never happen. That this strange moment of maybe-intimacy was a one-off and he wouldn’t get it again. 

In his sleep, Reno shifted, his thin fingers clutching sleep-weak at Tseng’s thigh, and Tseng couldn’t blame the heat that pooled there on his  _ space panties _ . No, he wasn’t going to risk getting used to this proximity. Not when it burned like this.

**Author's Note:**

> This hit my head last night and so I shoved aside other things I've been working on to crank it out quick like. Sorry if there are any errors. 
> 
> I like to think that, despite the WROs best efforts, the Turks still do some seedy shit post all the games. Do they want to atone? Sure. Are they going to stop doing what they're good at in the name of clearing off some kind of moral tab? I doubt that.


End file.
